I know it seems like we are still in the middle of summer, but the fall will be here before you know it, which means that it’s time to start your kale, chard, and lettuces.
Our Ace Hardware had seeds half off and then seventy five percent off to close out the 2026 seeds, so, of course, I bought more, although one could argue that I didn’t need any more lettuce seeds. As a result, I have quite a variety of lettuces. I like to start my kale, chard, and lettuce seeds in pots and then transplant them into small nursery pots to grow until they are large enough to transplant into the garden.
Last year, we found a recipe for a Caribbean Swiss Chard and Butternut Stew that is DELICIOUS and we have harvested a TON of butternut squash, so I planted a few pots worth of swiss chard so we have enough to make more of that stew–it freezes great so I will make a big batch and freeze it for nights when I don’t want to cook. I didn’t plant as much kale this fall because we still have kale in the freezer from last season.
The other update is on the fencing around the sweet potatoes. If you didn’t see that post, here is a link: https://cathyathomeontheriver.com/2026/07/15/deterring-deer/ The deer were eating all the leaves on the sweet potato vines about as fast as they could grow, so we added a fence and it worked! The sweet potato vines are growing so well that they are climbing the fence.
These should be ready by the beginning of October and we expect to have quite a harvest. I’ll report back on that.
